Serbia’s Ministry of Culture purchased a five-branched silver candelabrum from the Obrenović court for 28,000 euros at the Schloss Ahlden auction house in Germany, and the piece returned to Serbia for the Historical Museum of Serbia. The ministry said it was the largest known 19th-century silver object associated with the Obrenović dynasty and the largest silver item from the dynasty’s court furnishings, and that it would be kept as part of the national treasure.
The candelabrum, in the Empire style, dates to the first half of the 19th century. It features a sculpture of Nike (Victoria) the goddess of victory, weighs 8.03 kilograms, and stands 78 centimeters tall. It was made of 13 Lot silver by Viennese goldsmith Anton Kol, and its base bore a cast silver coat of arms of the Kingdom of Serbia.
“In this candelabrum, which we are bringing home after decades of wandering around the world, there is much symbolism, and that is why its purchase makes me especially proud,” said Nikola Selaković, Serbia’s minister of culture, according to Danas. He said on Instagram that the purchase was of great importance for preserving Serbian cultural heritage.
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Dejan Vukelić, a doctoral candidate in art history and expert advisor at the Mathematical Institute of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, assessed the candelabrum’s return as important for reassessing the role of the Obrenovićs. “When he became king, Milan Obrenović, who was oriented towards then-advanced European trends, created a lavish court by Balkan standards, because he wanted, especially after the coronation in 1882, for the state to be [appropriately] presented,” stated Vukelić.
After the May Coup, some of the dynasty’s treasures were destroyed or stolen, and the rest were sold at auctions. In the summer of 1903, a commission compiled the Inventory of Royal and Crown Goods, and another body separated private from dynastic property; a three-member state commission oversaw cataloging more than 60,000 items found in the Belgrade palace complex, according to Vecernje Novosti.